Michael Kimmel

Why Gender Equality is Good for Everyone - Men Included

In this talk, Michael Kimmel invites men into the fight for gender equality. At Kinship United, we face this issue head on by protecting girls from female genital mutilation, making sure they have the same educational opportunities as their male counterparts, and raising a generation of young men to respect women.

We believe that everyone is equal in the eyes of God, and that he never meant us to live in a world with such harsh inequality. We work in countries where women are often treated as second class citizens. Our work in these countries seeks to combat this mentality, the girls in our Kinship Projects attend school and dream of future careers that aren’t affected by their gender.

But as Kimmel discusses, gender equality is something that men have to be sold on as well. At Kinship United, we believe that wholeheartedly. It’s vital for men to believe in gender equality in order for belief systems to shift. Kimmel goes on to explain that gender equality is something that men should want to believe in, because it benefits everyone. The countries that have the most gender equality score highest on the happiness scales. Countries with greater gender equality are usually more economically successful – women who are educated and in the workplace are great economic assets. There is also evidence that companies that have greater gender equality tend to be better places to work. For more of these insights, watch the talk!

Kimmel makes the compelling point that gender equality is in the best interest of countries, companies and men. Gender equality, he says, is a win-win for everyone. And to fully empower girls, we must also engage boys and men. We’re all in this together, and we need to carry this together.

If you are interested in more information on gender equality and inequality in the developing countries where we work, as well as the importance of education for women, read our article here.